Video Lighting

Lighting is one of the most important factors when creating a video. Without good light, a video will often come out looking dull and grainy even if you're using a high-quality professional camcorder.

Things to consider

White balance

Set the "White Balance" on the camera - every time you're in a new room or the lighting changes. This setting tells your camera what the color "white" looks like in the room and will automatically adjust to properly match other colors. To learn how to set the "White Balance" on a camera, click here.

Multiple light sources

Use lighting from two to three sources so light is uniformly dispersed over the scene. Generally, ensure that background lighting is not brighter than the foreground.

Key Light

This is the main light. It is usually the strongest and has the most influence on the look of the scene. It is placed to one side of the camera/subject so that this side is well lit and the other side has some shadow.

Fill Light

This is the secondary light and is placed on the opposite side of the key light. It is used to fill the shadows created by the key. The fill will usually be softer and less bright than the key. To achieve this, you could move the light further away or use some spun. You might also want to set the fill light to more of a flood than the key.

Back Light

The back light is placed behind the subject and lights it from the rear. Rather than providing direct lighting (like the key and fill), its purpose is to provide definition and subtle highlights around the subject's outlines. This helps separate the subject from the background and provide a three-dimensional look.